Charlton Athletic super fan celebrates not missing a home game in 50 years

Clive Collett, 65, will reach milestone when Leicester City visit on Saturday

Charlton Athletic super fan Clive Collett is about to hit a major milestone on Saturday - with the visit of Leicester City marking 50 years since he has last missed a home match at The Valley.

The 65-year-old, who celebrates his birthday next week, can remember the last time he did not attend a game in SE7, a 2-1 loss to Notts County on August 16, 1975, which was the opening fixture in the old Division Two.

“Richie Bowman scored,” Collett, who went to his first Addicks match with his uncle around 1968, told South London Sport: Charlton Athletic Edition. “I remember that and then don’t remember details of some of the games I was actually at! I was on a family holiday in Hartlepool and I did see a game there - Hartlepool v Bournemouth.”

It throws up the question how the former Royal Mail postman, who now sits in the West Stand but used to be on the East Terrace before the closure of The Valley, has avoided social situations which make it more difficult to keep up his unbroken record of attendance?

“Most of the people I know and who are close friends of mine are Charlton fans anyway, so they know not to bother to ask me if Charlton are playing,” said Collett, who had lived in Plumstead before more lately being based in Abbey Wood.

“I haven’t got much close family and those close family are the same, I suppose. If I do get invited and Charlton are at home, or even away - because I go to every game but I have missed some in the last 50 years - I either decline or get there later.

“I never set out to create any record but I suppose the older I have got, it has made me more determined not to miss a game.

“I always meet up with some friends in Woolwich now and we have a few beers. We used to drink in pubs around the ground but they got fewer and more packed.

“When there was the move to Selhurst and then the move to Upton Park, there are those couple of times when you think you couldn’t be bothered to go - but I still did. Nothing other than that has ever threatened to stop me going.”

Collett has easily seen more than 1,000 home matches, so are there two or three that have been special?

“I would say the last one at The Valley, before the move,” he said. “We won 4-3 against Brighton one night (in October 1977), when Peter Ward was playing for them. The play-off promotion nights are other obvious ones to pick. We beat Halifax 3-1 in the snow, I think, when Derek Hales got a hat-trick. I could go on forever…but it is those kind of events.”

Collett picks out the 1970s as one of his favourite periods of support.

“Andy Nelson was the manager and we had Friday night football,” he said. “The seasons in the Premier League would be the other most enjoyable ones. The worst years are probably the most recent years!”

Collett was a Valley Party candidate for St Nicholas ward in the 1990 local elections. Supporters mobilised to form their own political party after the Labour-run council rejected planning permission for The Valley to be rebuilt.

“It meant a lot to get back home but, I’ve got to be honest, I kind of enjoyed it at Upton Park, I suppose. At one stage I had given up that we would get back to The Valley and I was determined to keep supporting the team.

“Upton Park suited us better than what Selhurst did and I quite liked it there. The pubs and local people were quite friendly. Dare I say it, we could’ve stayed at Upton Park - in my mind I had accepted that.”

Other moments which tested the loyalty and patience of the fanbase included Roland Duchatelet’s spell as Charlton owner.

Coalition Against Roland Duchatelet (CARD) produced highly-visual demonstrations against the Belgian, who still owns the stadium and training ground, including throwing plastic toy pigs on to the pitch to suspend a match.

Collett said: “I took part in one of the protests, by walking out early in whatever game that was (Middlesbrough in March 2016). But then I thought I’d never do that again because I missed a goal (Callum Harriott scored the second in a 2-0 victory).

“I was obviously anti-Roland (Duchatelet) but I kind of thought that one day he’ll be gone anyway.”

Collett picks out striker Derek ‘Killer’ Hales, Charlton’s all-time record scorer, as his favourite player.

“He was a character, as well as the goals he got for us. It was his whole demeanour, attitude and everything else. Hales is the one who sticks most in my mind.

“In terms of managers, it would be Alan Curbishley. But I liked Andy Nelson and Mike Bailey - all the ones who got us promotion.”

Nathan Jones is the latest boss to achieve that feat and Charlton have set about the challenge of Championship football in impressive fashion.

“It is going to be very tough and I just want to stay up,” said Collett. “I am not getting carried away after a couple of good results.”

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